Toy railway system



'Mrch91943i Y D.'V. GQ-ODII-REY 2,313,335

TOY RA] ILWAY SYSTEM Filed May 3, 1941 I lNVENTOR DONALD v. GODFREYATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 9, 1943 TOY RAILWAY SYSTEM Donald V. Godfrey,Girard, Pa., assignor to Louis Marx & Company, Inc., New York, N. Y., acorporation of New, York Application May 3, 1941, Serial No. 391,672

8 Claims.

This invention relates to toy railway systems, and more particularly toa ramp and flat car arrangement for automatic unloading of a V6- hicle.

The primary object of my invention is to generally improve toy railroadsby simulating the transportation of vehicles. A more particular objectis to provide a car for carrying a vehicle and arranged to automaticallyunload the same.

Another object is to provide a stationary ramp forming a part of thetrack system to facilitate unloading of the vehicle from the car. Stillanother object is to provide means for automatically discharging thevehicle from the car when the car reaches the ramp.

In accordance with more specific features and objects of the invention,the discharge of the vehicle may be obtained either by tilting avehicle-carrying runway to inclined position, or by ejection of thevehicle along the runway, or preferably as here disclosed, by both.Still another object is to provide means tohold the vehicle againstmovement during transportation on the railway car, which means isautomatically released when unloading the Vehicle at the stationaryramp.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing, andsuch other objects asv willhereinafter appear, my invention consists in the toy elements and theirrelation one to the other as hereinafter are more particularly describedin the specification and sought to be defined in the claims. Thespecification is accompanied by a drawing, in which Fig. 1 is apartially sectioned side elevation showing a railway car for carryingand automatically unloading a Vehicle;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the railway car when moved against thestationary ramp, with the vehicle removed;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same with the vehicle running down theramp;

Fig. 4 is a section taken in the plane of the line 4-4 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a schematic illustration of one track layout with which theinvention may be employed.

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to Fig. 5, the tracklayout there shown comprises a loop of track l2 provided with a dead endspur or siding l4, said siding being connected to the loop 12 by meansof a switch I6. The spur l4 preferably includes an uncoupling device l8,which may be of the type disclosed in U. S. Letters Patent 2,157,187,issued to W. E.

Rexford, May 9, 1939.

unit 26.

The spur terminates in a stationary ramp 20. In accordance with thepresent invention, the vehicle bearing car is backed against the ramp20, and thereupon automatically discharges the vehicle which runs downthe ramp to the ground. The car may be made the last car for purposes ofunloading the vehicle in any desired manner, as by manual uncouplingother following cars on the loop l2, or by the provision of a remotelycontrolled coupling unit in the main loop l2, but I prefer to provide anadditional spur 22 and switch 24, said spur 22 being provided withanother uncoupling In this way the train may be backed into spur 22 andthe unit 26 used to disconnect all cars following the vehicle bearingcar, whereupon the shortened train is then backed into the spur [4 tounload the vehicle. The empty car may, if desired, be left in spur l4,while the train is again made up without the empty car by backing thetrain into spur 22 to collect the other cars.

The car and ramp arrangement may be gen erally described with referenceto Fig. 3 of the drawing, which clearly shows the stationary ramp 20mounted at the end of spur [4. The

car comprises a fiat-car like chassis 30 mounted on wheeled trucks 32and 3 3, said trucks preferably being provided with suitable couplingbars 36 and 38. The car includes a runway 40 which is normally disposedin horizontal position as shown in Fig. 1, but which may be raised tothe tilted position shown in Fig. 3 when the vehicle 42 is to beunloaded. The upper end of stationary ramp 20 has a height substantiallythe same as that of the lower end of runway 40.

Referring now to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the runway 4|] is preferably flangedor reversely folded at 44 to provide guides for the vehicle wheels, andalso to stifien the runway which is pressed out of sheet metal. One endof the runway is pivoted on the chassis 30, this being done in thepresent case by the provision of tongues 46 which extend downwardlythrough mating slots in chassis 30. A cam 43 is pivoted on chassis 30 bymeans of pin 50, and an extension 52 of the cam is connected to a rod54. This extends beyond the end of the chassis to form a feeler 56. The.rod 54 may be guided by disposing a part of the same above the chassis,as is clearly shown in the drawing, an intermediate part passing througha slot 58. It will be evident by comparison of Figs. 1 and 3 that whenthe car is moved against the end 63 of the stationary ramp 20, theprojecting feeler 56 turns cam 48 to the upward position shown in Fig.3, thereby raising the free end of the runway.

To insure discharge of the vehicle 42, it may be positively moved orejected along the runway. For this purpose I provide an upwardlyextending ejector 62, said ejector being downwardly slotted at 64 toreceive a part of the vehicle, most conveniently the axle 66. Theejector 62 is pivoted on chassis 36 by means of the pin 56, and itextends upwardly through a slot 68 in runway 46. It will be evident fromcomparison of Figs. 1 and 3 that when feeler 56 bears against thestationary ramp, the ejector 62 is turned to the position shown in Fig.3, thereby urging the vehicle along the runway and finally disengagingitself from the axle of the vehicle.

The ejector 62 is important as a holding means for the vehicle whentransporting the same on When the ejector is in the the railway car.normal or upright position shown in Fig. 1, the vehicle is held securelyagainst movement off the car. However, when the car reaches the ramp theholding means is automatically disengaged from the vehicle.

The ejector serves still another purpose in locating the runway 40against sideward or lateral movement. By using the ejector 62 the runwaymay be held in position simply by the use of the pivot tongues 46previously referred to and the ejector 62.

In practice the ejector 62 and the cam 48 may be made of a single pieceof material such as fibre board. This piece is essentially an anglelever which is connected to and operated by the feeler 56 and rod 54.One arm of the angle lever is shaped to act as a cam for tilting therunway. The other arm of the angle lever is shaped to act as a holdingmeans and an ejecting means for the vehicle. With this construction thevehicle is held against undesired movement along the runway by its ownweight, for the weight of the vehicle and the runway keeps the cam 48 inthe depressed position shown in Fig. 1. This position may be limited bymovement of the bottom edge of cam 48 against the end I6 of a slot '12'cut through the top wall of the chassis or flat car 30. With cam 48held in the downward position shown in Fig. 1, the ejector 62 is held invertical position, thereby restraining the vehicle against accidentalmovement.

The ramp 26 is preferably made up of a single piece of sheet metal, theside edges of which are bent upwardly to form guide flanges i4. Ifdesired, the surface of the runway may be bent to form a series oftransverse ridges or treads 16.

One end of the ramp has an extension which is turned downwardly asindicated at 18 to elevate that end of the ramp so as to maintain thedesired angular position. Referring to Fig. 4, it will be seen that thedownwardly turned end is preferably cut away at the sides to fit betweenthe wheel bearing rails 86 of the toy track. The center part is cut awayas indicated at 62 to clear the third rail or power rail 84 in order notto short-circuit the track. The lower edges 86 rest on the ground withinthe end tie 88 of the track, thereby anchoring the ramp againstmovement. In this way the ramp acts as a bumper as well as a ramp and iswell able to take the push of the feeler when the car is backed into theramp. The end 18 of the ramp is preferably cut away at 90 to clear thecoupling bar 38 of the car, because the coupling bar preferably projectsfrom the car even further than the feeler 56.

However, a part 92 of the ramp is left intact for engagement with thefeeler 56.

The ramp 26 is readily applied to or removed from the track section. Forthis purpose it is merely necessary to turn the ramp to angularposition, as is indicated by the broken lines 20 in Fig. 4. In thisangular position the shaped edges at the bottom of end 18 move from thesolid line position conforming to the rails 86, to the broken lineposition indicated at 94 in Fig. 4. The ramp is then readily liftedupwardly out of the track section. In applying the ramp to the track itis first set down in angular position within the end tie 88 and is thenstraightened to a position in alignment with the track as shown in Fig.2.

It is believed that the construction and operation, as well as the manyadvantages of my improved ramp and automatic unloading car will beapparent from the foregoing detailed description thereof. It will alsobe apparent that while I have shown and described my invention in apreferred form, many changes and modifications may be made in thestructure disclosed without departing from the spirit of the invention,as sought to be defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A toy railway car comprising a chassis, wheeled trucks carrying saidchassis, a vehicle runway on top of said chassis, said runway beingpivoted at one end, means for elevating the opposite end to incline therunway for discharge of a vehicle therefrom, and a slotted ejector foreither holding or ejecting a vehicle from the runway, said ejectorcomprising an upwardly projecting member having a downwardly extendingslot dimensioned to receive an axle of the toy vehicle and to therebyprevent longitudinal movement of the vehicle on the runway, saidmember-being pivoted for downward and forward movement in such a manneras to force the vehicle along the runway and to then disengage the slotfrom the axle.

2. A toy railway system comprising a dead end track terminating in astationary ramp, and a toy railway car comprising a wheeled chassiscarrying a vehicle, a lever pivoted on said chassis, a rod extendingfrom said lever and projecting from the chassis in such position as tobear against and be moved by the stationary ramp when the car is movedagainst the ramp, thereby oscillating said lever from vehicle-holdingposition to vehicle-releasing position, said lever projecting upwardlywhen in vehicle-holding position and being dimensioned to receive a partof the vehicle.

3. A toy railway system comprising a dead end track terminating in astationary ramp, and a toy railway car comprising a wheeled chassis, avehicle runway disposed on said chassis, an angle lever pivoted on saidchassis, a rod extending from said angle lever and projecting from thechassis in such position as to bear against and be moved by thestationary ramp when the car is moved against the ramp, therebyoscillating said angle lever from vehicle-holding position tovehicle-releasing position, one arm of said angle lever being arrangedto elevate one end of the runway, the other arm of said angle levernormally projecting upwardly and having means to engage and hold a partof the vehicle in order to prevent movement thereof when the angle leveris in vehicle-holding position.

4. A toy railway system comprising a dead end track terminating in astationary ramp, and a toy railway car comprising a chassis carried onwheeled trucks, a vehicle runway disposed on said chassis, said runwaybeing pivoted at the end toward the stationary ramp, an angle leverpivoted on said chassis, a rod extending from said angle lever towardthe pivoted end of the runway and projecting from the chassis in suchposition as to bear against and be moved by the stationary ramp when thecar is moved against the ramp, thereby oscillating said angle lever fromvehicle-holding position to vehiclereleasing position, one arm of saidangle lever being shaped to act as a cam for elevating the free end ofthe runway, the other arm of said angle lever normally projectingupwardly and being downwardly slotted to receive an axle of the vehicle.

5. A toy railway car comprising a wheeled chassis, said wheels beingflanged for operation on a toy track, a toy vehicle having regularwheels for land operation, a vehicle runway on top of said chassis anddimensioned to receive and support the wheels vof the wheeled vehicle,and a slotted ejector for either holding or ejecting said vehicle fromthe runway, said ejector comprising an upwardly projecting memberdimensioned to receive a part of said toy vehicle and to thereby preventlongitudinal movement of the vehicle on the runway, saidmember beingpivoted for downward and forward movement in such a manner as to rollthe vehicle on its own wheels along the runway and to then disengageitself from the vehicle.

6. A toy railway car comprising a wheeled chassis, said wheels beingflanged for operation on a toy track, a toy vehicle having regularwheels for land operation, a vehicle runway on top of said chassis anddimensioned to receive and support the wheels of the wheeled vehicle,means to incline the runway for discharge of said vehicle therefrom, andan upwardly project ing member dimensioned to receive a part of said toyvehicle and to thereby prevent longitudinal movement of the vehicle onthe runway when the runway is in horizontal position, said member beingdisengaged from the toyvehicle when the runway is moved to inclinedposition, thus permitting aid vehicle to roll on its own wheels down theinclined runway. I

7. A toy vehicle automatic Lmloading system comprising an inclinedstationary ramp, a first toy vehicle comprising a wheeled chassis, avehicle runway disposed on said chassis, said runway being pivoted atone end to afford upward movement at the other end, a second and smallertoy vehicle having regular wheels for land operation, said runway beingdimensioned to receive and support the wheels of said second vehicle,the upper end of the ramp being at substantially the same elevation asthe pivoted end of the runway, the chassis of said first vehicle havingan angle lever pivoted thereon, said lever having an upwardly projectingarm for engaging a part of and so holding the second vehicle in positionon the first vehicle, and having a sidewardly projecting arm shaped toact as a cam for elevating the free end of the runway, a rod extendingfrom said angle lever toward the pivoted end of the runway andprojecting from the chassis in such a position as to bear against and bemoved by the stationary ramp when the first vehicle is moved against theramp, thereby oscillating said angle lever from vehicleholding positionto vehicle-releasing position, while at the same time tilting therunway, whereby the second vehicle readily rolls on its own wheels downthe runway and the ramp to the ground.

8. A toy railway unloading system for automatically unloading toyvehicles, said system comprising a track, an inclined stationary ramp atone end of the track, a toy railway car including a wheeled chassis,said wheels being flanged for operation on the toy track, a vehiclerunway disposed on said chassis, said runway being pivoted at one end toaiford upward movement at the other end, a toy automotive vehicle havingregular wheels for land operation, said runway being dimensioned toreceive and support the wheels of said vehicle, the upper end of theramp being at substantially the same elevation as the pivoted end of therunway, the chassis of said railway car having an angle lever pivotedthereon, said lever having an upwardly projecting arm for engaging apart of and so holding the toy vehicle in position on the railway car,and having a sidewardly projecting arm shaped to act as a cam forelevating the free end of the runway, a rod extending from said anglelever toward the pivoted end of the run way and projecting from thechassis in such a position as to bear against and be moved by thestationary ramp when the railway car is moved against the ramp, therebyoscillating said angle lever from vehicle-holding position tovehiclereleasing position, while at the same time tilting the runway,whereby the vehicle readily rolls on its own wheels down the runway andthe ramp to the ground.

DONALD V. GODFREY.

DISCLAIMER 2,313,335.Donald V. Godfrey, Girard, Pa. ToY RABLWAY SYSTEM.Patent dated March 9, 1943. Disclaimer filed January 22, 1944, by theassignee, Louis Marx dc Company, Inc. Hereby enters its disclaimer toclaim 6 of said patent.

[Ofiicial Gazette February 22, 1944.]

